Miami To Exumas

[Mike & Lilly]

Here is my video compilation of the pictures that Cindy and I took of our trip.

I would give what i don't have to experience something like that with a good group of people having fun and enjoying life, with God's blessings soon, thank you guys so much for sharing, I'm sure there are a lot of people like me dreaming on doing something like this thanks again and God bless.

 

[Mike & Lilly]

I have the lenco

@1948Isaac do you have one or 2 on your 240?

 

[Mike & Lilly]

@1948Isaac do you have one or 2 on your 240?

@1948Isaac never mind lol i kept reading and looking at pictures and got to my question u have 2 lol thank you for the updates and can't wait to hear how good you did with waves

 

[JROD]

@1948Isaac Man do I miss it already! Its always incredible to set a goal and achieve it but in this case its really been bitter sweet as what do we look forward to now lol.

Cuba next!!! Let's go!

 

[JROD]

Cuba next!!! Let's go!

We could do the NC Outer Banks early spring summer, I was going to say as a train up for Cuba, but after the nearly 800 miles we covered to Exumas, I'll say we all passed the Boys & Girls Scouts water explorers test. ;-)

 

[JROD]

I would give what i don't have to experience something like that with a good group of people having fun and enjoying life, with God's blessings soon, thank you guys so much for sharing, I'm sure there are a lot of people like me dreaming on doing something like this thanks again and God bless.

Andy, this compilation of pics is awesome! Thanks!

 

[Jaime]

Best Jetboat video on YouTube!!!

 

[Khalid]

I saw this video on YouTube and it motivated me to upgrade my boat to do a similar trip. So, thanks for the great video!

 

[Fourjets]

Omg! I have never been so jealous of an adventure in my life. Great video.
Do you have an average daily fuel expense, names,locations of you over night stops,costs,etc...
Basically total trip cost broken down.... I'm starting a savings account for 2018 trip similar to yours.
This can be a private conversation if u like.
Thanks for the consideration.
Todd

 

[Andy S]

@Fourjets Here are some details about our Exuma trip that might help. Some of this might be posted throughout the thread but I'm to lazy to look for it.

Fuel - average was 2.5 mpg at roughly $4 to $4.50 per gallon. The rough number I use is whatever the fuel cost is in Florida (not marina gas) add $2 to $2.50 for the cost in the Bahamas.
Daily mileage - It all depends on the sea conditions and your travel/exploring plans.

Our travels
Day 1 - Fort Lauderdale to Bimini (cleared customs) to Chub Cay - 150 miles. We were hoping to make it to Nassau (190 total miles) but Chub Cay Marina wasn't pumping fuel until the morning.
Day 2 - Chub Cay to Nassau - 40 miles. Met up with friends and family that flew into Nassau and spent the night
Day 3 - Nassau to Staniel Cay, Exuma - 90 miles, final destination. Boats/skis stayed at Staniel Cay Yacht Club and we rented houses about 1/2 mile away
Day 4, 5, 6, & 7 - exploring north and south of Staniel Cay - guess we but probably traveled 200 to 300 miles
Day 8 - Staniel Cay to Nassau to Chub Cay to Bimini - 220 miles
Day 9 - hung out and explored with our fellow jetboaters in and around Bimini
Day 10 - Bimini to Fort Lauderdale - 60 miles

Travel speed is a big determining factor in how far you can go. Make sure the group you are with will travel at the same speed. A slow boat can really put a damper on your plans.

As for details on where we stayed, none of the places we stayed were spectacular enough to recommend. Chub Cay for instance, if you get stuck there, there is only one place to stay. Look at Nassau you will find plenty of places to stay, we stayed at a place on the east end of Paradise Island. Next time, I would look into a place in Palm Cay, this is location of the marina we used to fuel up going and coming. In Staniel Cay there are not many options, the size of your group will dictate where you might stay.

I don't have the details right now on the all the costs but my rough memory has the total cost for the wife and I at between $5000 and $6000.

There are a lot of variables to determine how much your trip will cost; fuel, lodging, slip rental, food, etc and don't forget about boat upgrades and safety equipment.

Hope this helps you get started in planning your adventure.

 

[luckie_529]

60 hours for the trip at 10 gallons per hour times 6 dollars per gallon plus oil change when you get home. 150.00 bh water usages fee for boating.
Chub cay and staniel cay have room from 250 to 300 a night. Slip fee average 2.30 per foot with a minimum of 30feet in a lot of places. 5 dollars per person to swim with the sharks.

Worth every penny.

Omg! I have never been so jealous of an adventure in my life. Great video.
Do you have an average daily fuel expense, names,locations of you over night stops,costs,etc...
Basically total trip cost broken down.... I'm starting a savings account for 2018 trip similar to yours.
This can be a private conversation if u like.
Thanks for the consideration.
Todd

 

[luckie_529]

I like paradise harbour club and Marina on paradise inland. Palm cay looks nice and good rates. There are homes on HomeAway throughout the Exuma inlands that you can rent.

Cuba is looking good

 

[Fourjets]

Wow,
Thank you so much for the detailed history of your adventure. I really appreciate all the info.

We owned a 2005 sx230 for 10 years and absolutely loved it. I kept it in the garage so the day I sold it, it looked the same as the day I bought it...(so the new owner said). I agreed.
I have loved pwc since I was a little boy riding my best friends Kawasaki 440 standup on the sassafras river in Md.
Presently, I own an assortment of pwc's(too many really.) but I love each of them....

We boat out of Wilmington NC. Mostly ICWW travel up and down the coast from myrtle beach sc to Beaufort NC on the North end of our travels. Although we did take the boat to a number of different lakes in Nc,sc,Va. and Annapolis md.

I have been a life long boater and grew up racing sailboat on the Chesapeake bay. Then on to power boats of all sorts from age 25 to present(47).

After selling the sx230 2.5 years ago we have been enjoying the cuddly cabin life of our 2011 Sea Ray 260 Sundancer.
It's just big enough to get the job done for over nights and the occasional week long vacations on the water. Albeit, hooked up to shore power so my girls can have hot water and cold air, lol. My wife and I have 5 &10yr old daughters.

We are trying to plan a Florida trip in either the Sea Ray if we still have it or (hopefully) another jet boat.
I really like the new Yamaha jet boat features from 2015 to present in their 24 ft boats. I will look for a used 15 or 16 when the time comes..

If we take the Sea Ray to the Bahamas then the lodging costs are greatly reduced. But, with a prop boat comes the added concern over water depths, coral heads, etc.... plus, we don't have a generator in our boat so that raises its own issues.. but the added security of a dryer ride,solid build,and ability to escape the elements of the need arises.. both boats have pros and cons, it's just a matter of what we happen to own when we go....

I think running the islands in a2015+ 242 limited S or similar would be so incredible. Shoal draft would seemingly open up lots of options for getting into hard to reach areas. (I believe fuel burn is similar between the 242 and my sundancer.

Anyway, I'm getting sleepy, lol.
Thanks again for your response.
Please keep in touch.

Cheers, Todd

 

[Fourjets]

P.s
Please tell me about your Cobalt. Engine and drive? 350 merc w. B3 drive?
Was your ave fuel burn 2.5 over trip?

 

[Andy S]

P.s
Please tell me about your Cobalt. Engine and drive? 350 merc w. B3 drive?
Was your ave fuel burn 2.5 over trip?

I have the base Volvo engine, 300hp with duo-prop out drive. On the Exuma trip every time we stopped for gas @1948Isaac (2015 ar240) and I put the same amount of gas, within a gallon or two. The trip average fuel consumption for my boat was 2.5 mpg. One difference between our boats is on flat water with similar amount of people on border, at wide open throttle he would very slowly pull away from me. We never did a race from being stopped, so I can compare quickness but my guess the Yamaha is quicker but not by a lot.

 

[Fourjets]

Cool.
Did you run at wot often?
What was ave cruise? Or did u run fast most of the time to cover distances needed?
Day 8 must have been a WOT day. 220 miles, wow!
My sea ray like 26 to 30 mph.
I dont think we will be going so deep into the islands but i would atleast like to make Atlantis.

 

[Fourjets]

Did anyone run a ground or issues with sucking up any debris?
How much tidal swing is there? 2ft?+-

I may do a bimini run with some buddies on our yami Fx Cruisers this year. A long weekend run. Weather permitting. Of course.

 

[Andy S]

@Fourjets most of the time we ran at 40 mph, wot was only in flat condition and for short times. During rough seas the slowest we ran was 30mph, I would bet most would have run about 20mph in the rough seas. Isaac and my philosophy is to get to the destination as fast and safely as we can handle. Thankful his crew and my crew plus the others on the trip can handle rough seas the same, that's is one of many reasons we travel together.

Tidal swings are minimal in the Bahamas, but prop boats do have to pay attention to tides at certain locations.

I did run a ground in Exuma. I was following a ski, miss read my gps, and went on the wrong side of a rock formation. A Yamaha Jetboat would have probably made it through, but my Cobalt hang a little lower.

 

[1948Isaac]

Best Jetboat video on YouTube!!!

Thank You

 

[1948Isaac]

I saw this video on YouTube and it motivated me to upgrade my boat to do a similar trip. So, thanks for the great video!

Thank You. Glad to share a bit of our journey